With its third acquisition in less than two years, Barre3 bought San Diego-based Studio Barre in a transaction Barre3 CEO Sadie Lincoln said brings another concept with a “client-first mentality” into her system.

Studio Barre’s 11 locations in California, Montana, Rhode Island and South Carolina, all franchised, will rebrand as Barre3 over the next seven months. Shannon Higgins, a former professional dancer, founded Studio Barre in 2008 and began franchising the concept in 2013.

The deal comes about six months after Barre3 added Barre Centric’s three studios in Buffalo, New York, and follows the purchase of The Barre Code in late 2023. Twenty-two Barre Code locations ultimately converted to Barre3, and Lincoln’s brand is up to 170 active locations.

The strategic acquisitions have largely been opportunistic, said Lincoln, and arose from relationships she developed with other fitness concept founders during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic as they came together to share best practices.

“We started getting the message out that we would be open to acquiring and converting,” said Lincoln, who with husband Chris founded Barre3 in 2008 in Portland, Oregon. “Then it’s about are we really aligned on mission and values, and then would their members and franchisees embrace a change to Barre3.”

Franchisees who’ve converted their studios to Barre3 are “excited to have a louder voice,” continued Lincoln as she noted the fitness segment is “becoming extremely competitive.”

“Franchisees are recognizing it’s so much more important to have a powerful brand,” she said. “Our No. 1 job is to support our franchisees. We’re always thinking about our differentiation in the segment.”

The company’s Barre3 Signature class combines strength, cardio and mindfulness, the latter being a practice that incorporates meditative aspects into the fitness routine. The brand more recently added more class formats to ensure it provides members with a well-rounded offering, said Lincoln.

“We drive revenue and profitability by designing fitness programming for women at every inflection point,” she said. The brand created an online streaming platform in 2011 and continued to enhance it with thousands of workouts. A diverse revenue stream and hybrid model remain important in a post-COVID world, she added.

Barre3’s annualized average gross revenue for franchise units is $377,000. The cost to open a new studio ranges from $279,333 to $556,424, and a typical location is between 1,400 and 2,000 square feet.

Lincoln, who noted she’s grown Barre3 on cash flow for the last 17 years and doesn’t have outside investors, highlighted several tailwinds that are propelling demand for boutique fitness classes. Among them is the proliferation of the so-called GLP-1 medicines such as Wegovy for weight loss, which have led to people feeling more comfortable coming into the studios, she said. And many of those people now know more about the importance of strength training to achieving their fitness goals.

“Wearables are another,” said Lincoln of the growing use of fitness trackers and watches. “The general population understands more of what’s going on with their bodies and how fitness impacts that. It’s really driving behavior and motivation to exercise.”